Who Fishes for Alligator Gar in Texas?

To date, research by the TPWD has focused on understanding how long alligator gar live, how fast they grow, and how often they successfully reproduce, as well as how healthy our populations currently are. Gathering this information was necessary in order to determine how populations are reacting to current fishing pressures, and to predict how they will respond in the future.

While we have learned a great deal about the fish, we needed to know more about the anglers. Data from statewide surveys have suggested that about 100,000 anglers fish for gar in Texas each year. These include rod-and-reel anglers, bow fishers, jugliners, and trotliners. Our alligator gar fisheries also support a thriving guide industry, serving clients from all over the world. In 2018, TPWD conducted a voluntary online survey of people interested in the management and conservation of alligator gar in Texas. The goal was to gain a better understanding of who our constituents are, how our anglers like to fish, their harvest practices, and how they would like to see alligator gar managed in the future.

The web-based survey attracted almost 13,000 people, with 8,600 providing some level of response. Here are some highlights:

• About 70% of survey respondents used rod and reel as their primary gear for alligator gar, and about 24% used bow and arrow. Of those whose primary gear was bow and arrow, 35% also used rod and reel.
• A majority of respondents are satisfied with the current regulation, but 45% also seem open to having special, localized regulations.
• Overall, Texas anglers are open to using length limits to regulate gar harvest. Bow fishers (55%) are less likely to support length limits than rod and reel anglers (78%).
• Sixty-five percent of respondents support the idea of mandatory reporting of alligator gar harvest.
• Most Texas anglers (84%) support allowing anglers to harvest alligator gar for food, even though only about 40% suggest they actually harvest gar to eat.
• A majority also support allowing anglers to harvest alligator gar for trophies (60%), and about 48% suggest they actually harvest gar for trophies.
• Among respondents who fish for alligator gar, most harvest three or fewer each year.

Our management goal is to sustain our unique alligator gar fisheries for future generations of Texans. Information gained through the survey, coupled with our understanding of population biology and ecology, will be used to make future management decisions.